Demon Headgames
by twitchy witch
Summary: Ash tells his side of the story.  And what a naughty side it is.  Now rated M.
1. Chapter 1

_What is that demon thinking, anyway? I'm curious myself.  
**NOTE: **This story contains spoilers for "In the Ever Afterlife."_

**Q and A with Ashmedai**

**TW: A number of you have been implying that Ash might be getting sweet on his summoner, Evie. He agreed to come here today to clear up this matter.**

Ash: And also because I was told there would be cake.

**TW: So are you sweet on Evie?**

Ash: Define "sweet."

**TW: You know, are you falling for her?**

Ash: Me? She's the clumsy one, I'm afraid. Always tripping over something or another.

**TW: No, we mean, are you beginning to maybe fall in love with her?**

Ash: *laughter* You're kidding, right?

**TW: So you don't have any feelings for her?**

Ash: Oh, I have _plenty_ of feelings for her.

**TW: Will you describe them?**

Ash: I also have plenty of feelings about this line of questioning, and plenty of feelings about cake. Which I have not yet received, by the way.

**TW: Why did you send her red roses, then?**

Ash: To fuck with her head. Why else? You should have seen the look on that summoner's face when I told him what I wanted him to do. _That_ was priceless.

**TW: Are you disappointed you couldn't make her a familiar?**

Ash: *shrug* I've got a familiar. I like her just fine. And I've got the only other known female who can invoke demon magic stirring curses for me three days a week. Why on earth would I be disappointed? The only disappointing thing was not being able to bargain her up to five days, but we have plenty of time for that.

**TW: Who is Solange, and how did you catch her?**

Ash: I don't remember who she was. As to how I caught her, I didn't, actually. I got her in trade from another summoner.

**TW: You mean someone gave her to you in exchange for something?**

Ash: Yup. I love it when mortals do all the work for me.

**TW: What'd he or she get in return?**

Ash: He got an eternity in a bottle on my shelf. He wasn't all that good at bargaining. And it turned out Solange was far better suited for the job of familiar than he was. When I'm pleased with Solange, I let her play with him. You might be surprised at how creative she can be.

**TW: Do you love Solange?**

Ash: Do you love _your_ pets? I'm fond of her. She's a good familiar. Obedient, good at stirring curses, good in bed, and she plays the harp.

**TW: Does she love you?**

Ash: Does it matter?

**TW: It might to her...?**

Ash: *shrug* She might. I'm all she's got, after all. And I'm not all that cruel to her, as demons go. For example, she still has her tongue.

**TW: What are your plans for Evie?**

Ash: Wouldn't you like to know? *smirk*

**TW: Why did you let her mark you?**

Ash: I did it to taunt her. And scare her. And could not believe my eyes when she completed the ritual exactly as any demon woman would- assuming they accept, and don't bite your head off for your temerity, that is. And I also couldn't believe that it was functional. There was no way on God's green earth I would have let the woman mark me if I'd known. I certainly wouldn't have tried to steal her soul, that's for damned sure. But...what's done is done.

**TW: You don't like it?**

Ash: I didn't say that.

**TW: You like it?**

Ash: I didn't say _that,_ either.

**TW: Can you take it off?**

Ash: Not...easily, no. I'd have to admit to her that I'd need her help to do so, and she doesn't need to know that. Renouncing a mark is...well, it's a touchy subject among us. As you might have noticed. Don't tell her, or I'll have to devour your soul.

**TW: Do you think she's attracted to you?**

Ash: *smirk* You think? Now the more important question is, where's my cake?

**TW: Do you think she loves you?**

Ash: Evie? She's not that stupid. I love the way she tries to fight off her instincts. She can't stand that she can't resist me. It's wonderful.

**TW: Do you think she wants you as a mate?**

Ash: Does it matter? *eyeroll* And "mate?" We're demons, not animals. We don't "mate" any more than you do.

**TW: Do you want to marry her then?**

Ash: We don't "marry" either.

**TW: Do you want some sort of permanent relationship with her?**

Ash: Oh, yes. Preferably all seven days a week under my thumb, but I'll be happy with three for now.

**TW: No, some kind of long term equal commitment. You know.**

Ash: That would imply she is somehow an equal to myself. What a ridiculous notion!

**TW: You think she's a lesser being?**

Ash: I didn't say that.

**TW: You think she's better than you?**

Ash: If you don't stop putting words into my mouth, I shall force them down your throat by way of your eyeballs. And there is no such thing as equality in_ any_ relationship.

**TW: Are you going to try to trick her into getting pregnant?**

Ash: *horrified look* That's..._not_ something you want to _trick _a demon woman into. *shudder*

**TW: But you do want to? To save your race, and all?**

Ash: My race can go hang itself. This interview is over. I believe I want that cake right now.

**TW: What's your favorite kind of cake?**

Ash: Devil's food. Duh.

**TW: One more question? How did you feel when you caught Evie in "In the Ever Afterlife?"**

Ash: Well, now….why don't I simply tell retell it from my point of view?


	2. Chapter 2

**In Which We Get a Glimpse into Ash's Head**

"They're coming, Evie. You can hold a circle against me, or perhaps Al or Devi, but not all three of us together. We were all summoned tonight. For you."

The demon Kaviashmedaeva, known occasionally as Asmodeus or Ashmedai (though he'd been trying to ditch that nickname since Colin de Plancy had published that awful book), and currently as simply "Ash," had finally,_ finally_ cornered Yvette Therese Sinclaire. It was about fucking time. Having a witch escape you for over thirty six years is simply mortifying. He had to hand it to her, she was clever. Slippery as anything. But he could sense it: tonight was the night he'd finally take her home.

She sensed it, too- she was huddled in on herself avoiding his eyes. He could tell she was staving off a panic attack, as occasionally happened, and that she was on the brink of falling apart. A little nudge the right way, and perhaps she'd save him the trouble of trying to crack her circle himself. "You've lost, Evie," he told her ruthlessly. "Drop your circle."

To his surprise she fingered her watch instead. He gotten the story out of Algialarept one night, over drinks- the witch had a suicide charm of her own invention, and the guts to use it. He frowned at the thought of what might happen if she did manage to set it off, even outside of a ley line. She might actually manage to kill him. Al had been pretty certain she'd have managed it back in Colorado, which is why he simply tried to kill the bitch every time he got a chance. "No. I'd rather die," she said softly.

Shit. How to salvage this...? If only she'd have let him put on a real demon's mark, he'd have had full control of her soul if it left her body. But she hadn't, had never in all these years, asked him for anything that would justify it. She'd been so careful never to be in his debt for any reason. It was maddening, especially because he knew how desperately she wanted the knowledge of the fate of her friends.

No, he didn't have any leverage, but she didn't need to know that. Ash had had thousands of years to perfect the art of misleading without actually lying. "Evie. Suicide isn't going to save you. Not while you wear my mark-"

"Then take it off. Take it off, now! You promised you would, when I said. I say, take it off!"

Damn it all back to the Turn, he had told her that, hadn't he? It was the only way he'd gotten her to agree even to that much. Ash stood silently for a moment, thinking furiously for something that sounded good. "If I do, and it takes all three of us to break your circle, my claim on you will be contested."

"I don't care! I'll be dead by then anyway. Take it off! Take it off and let me go!"

Bloody hell. She'd kill herself if he kept his promise, and escape him. He felt a hint of desperation rising. Not now. Not now! Not after all this time! He'd been so careful, spending all these years trying to reestablish a good rapport with her, trying to earn back the trust he'd shattered so completely when she was young. He had done it with hundreds of witches. Thousands. Be sweet, charming, devilish, and flattering...until they finally came to believe that his evident fondness would translate to mercy on the other side of the lines. The mind was a wonderful thing. Even though logically they all knew what he was, there was always that magic moment when he convinced their subconscious that they would be the one exception to the rule. And their guard came down. And they made mistakes.

Yvette would be no exception, given enough time, he was absolutely certain. He just need a little more time! And perhaps...

Yes. He decided to take a risk. But he'd have to be subtle, so subtle. "No."

"No? Ash, you can't say no! We made a bargain! You can't go back on it! You can't!"

Definitely a risk, as he watch the fragile trust he'd managed to build between them crumble. Now to convince her that he had, perhaps, an emotional reason for not letting her go...without saying so. If this backfired, he would be screwed. If Algaliarept found them and overheard him, he'd be _seriously_ screwed. He felt a rush of adrenaline, savoring how alive he always felt when he was about to catch a new witch after a long hunt. "I shouldn't. But I can."

The witch gaped at him, open-mouthed with horror. "Ash," she pleaded, "You have to!"

"I don't." If Newt found out about this, especially if she found out the witch's secret ability to invoke their magic...he kept his face impassive, but inwardly he felt his tension rising.

"W-why, Ash? Why?" He frowned as he saw her finger the suicide charm again, obviously debating what she had to lose at this point. Crap.

"Evie." He tried to make his voice as menacing as he could, to convince her that she _really_ couldn't escape that way. "If you trigger that charm, I shall consign your soul to an eternity of torment unlike_ anything _you could imagine." If she survived long enough for him to grab her, anyway. He had to convince her to get rid of that thing. She was a tough little bitch, but he knew how fragile she could be when faced with situations that triggered her old trauma.

He could tell she believed him, at least. "How is that any different from what will happen if I _don't_?" she asked, and he could hear the despair in her voice.

Fuck, this was taking too long. Algaliarept or Devi could find them at any moment. She hadn't been in her usual haunts, and it was only because she wore his mark that he'd found her so quickly. But the others were good at tracking, and it was only a matter of minutes now. He unleashed a curse of confusion to cloak their location for a little longer.

"Because," he said quietly, then conceded that she had rather a good point. Once again he kicked himself for torturing the boy in front of her all those years ago. He'd been certain she would crack within a matter of minutes, but she hadn't. He'd been impressed at her heartlessness the time, but of course now she thought that she was in for the same treatment. He could hardly blame her. What to say?

Mislead her. "Because _I_ do not intend to use you as a familiar," he conceded finally, which was true. Al had tried to make his witch a familiar, and the mere mention of how _that_ had ended could still make Algaliarept pissy for days. "If I remove my mark, and you are captured, you will be sold to a demon who will."

Who will _try,_ anyway, he added mentally, suppressing a grin at the thought.

"Then how _do_ you intend to _use_ me, Ash?" she asked bitterly.

Ash was silent. Damn, he thought. She's good. How could he explain that he wasn't sure himself how he intended to use her. There really wasn't a category for her, but he was damned if he'd let he run free under the sun after all the time he'd invested in her. He'd find something she could do for him. Even if it was simply to warm his bed for awhile until he found a better way to bind her.

"Take the mark off, Ash, and let me go."

"No." _This isn't working_, he thought. _Stubborn little bitch!_

"What do you want from me, Ash?" she shouted, and he saw her control crack for the first time in their acquaintance. The circle that protected her flared and wavered for the barest instant before she regained control of it, far too briefly for him to take advantage of it.

Well, he could be honest, that might work. "I want you to choose _me_," he said. He was careful to keep any emotion from his voice, as if he were _trying_ to do so. Let her ponder that for a bit.

"You want me to choose to go with you. Instead of dying. So…that…when I look back after an eternity of torment I'll have to remember that it was all my own choice? No! Forget it! If I have to face eternal torment, it'll be kicking and fighting all the way!"

He felt a sudden unreasonable anger. Why did she have to make this so difficult? She shrieked, and he realized he'd let his own control slip a wee bit, jolting her through the mark. _Oops._ "The point of my marking you was to deal with this exact situation, Evie!" he replied angrily. "You agreed to it! Just who is breaking their word, here?"

"No, I never agreed to just hand myself over in _any_ situation, Ash, and you fucking know it!"

"Evie, drop your circle," he said coaxingly, cursing his lapse. "No more bargaining. No more games. No more deals. If you force me to use the others to break your circle, they will all own a piece of you. Surrender to me."

She was pondering now, trying to figure him out. He loved it when she tried to guess his motives. He knew he was sending enough mixed signals to confuse anyone. "You want me to trust you. After you just broke your word?"

Tricky, she was tricky. She knew what he was up to, she'd never forgotten that. The trick now was to make it a better option than suicide. "I do not share my possessions," he said darkly. "And after this night, you will be someone's possession. I am giving you a choice. Come to me willingly, or…don't."

"_I _could contest your claim. Tell them you broke your vow to me."

_Shit, don't go there, Evie! _ "You could," he agreed, exasperated and angry. _ And I would be completely fucked if Newt found out. _But then another tactic occurred to him. Perhaps he should tell her that? Perhaps he should tell her how far out on a limb he was going here to keep her from dying? It was an even bigger risk, but he thought...he thought he knew her well enough...

"If you do, and in the unlikely event that you are successful, I shall be stripped of my powers and position and given to you as a toy. Assuming Newt is in a good mood, of course, and doesn't just kill both of us for wasting her time. It wouldn't save you; you'd still be sold off. We both would."

"What?" she blinked in astonishment. "Then why…Jesus, Ash, why would you tell me this? Now? After you broke your word...?"

"I used your mark to find you before the others did. That single small show of trust allows me to give you this choice." He leaned forward, lowering his voice "Would you betray me, Evie?"

He watched as she considered this, feeling his anxiety growing. Had he miscalculated? Why the hell _was_ he going out on such a limb, anyway? Now that he'd made the move, he was beginning to wonder just why it had seemed like a good idea. Risking the wrath of Newt to capture a witch? Shit, what the hell was he-

"You're saying…_you_…trust _me_...not to?" she asked, and he wanted to breath a sigh of relief. Heh. He scoffed at the idea, then realized it was exactly what he had implied. And meant. How mortifying.

"No. I'm not _saying_ that." It'd be a sweet sunny day in the Ever After before he'd admit that out loud. "Come to me. I will not be able to hide your location for much longer."

_Trust me, Evie. Trust me,_ he chanted in his head, seeing her mind working furiously again._ Believe me. Stop fighting._ He could sense it, she was coming to a decision. He leaned forward with anticipation.

"Ash, what are the terms of your summoning tonight?"

His jaw nearly dropped. Son of a bitch, she had thought of something he hadn't. _Crap._ Despite himself, he felt another jolt of adrenaline, that promising surge of a coming challenge, a bargain to be made. He loved it, loved that she still wouldn't give up, even as the lazier part of him sighed again in exasperation. _All right, let's see what she comes up with this time._ "Simple. To kill you or take you to the Ever After for myself. Nothing more."

"Fake my death," she said.

"What?" What was she on to?

"They all know I have a suicide charm. They all know I'd use it before I'd get caught. Take me to another city. We'll leave the place a bloody mess. Make it look like I fought and lost."

He tilted his head, considering. She was asking him for help? Perhaps there was the possibility of a real mark in this, and then he wouldn't have to worry about that damned charm in the future. Intrigued, he reminded her of his obligations. "But I must fulfill the terms of my summoning, love. I have to take you to the Ever After."

"Then take us there first, through the lines, and out again. I'll pay the cost. For both of us. Four trips."

_Better and better..._ "Out of the goodness of my heart? When I have you here, now, within my grasp, after over thirty years of hunting you?" He waited in amusement, waited for _her_ to make the suggestion of upgrading the mark.

"Yes. Because then I won't tell anyone you would have broken your word to me. Ever. No matter the circumstances, assuming I have a choice in the matter."

_Wow, she's good,_ he thought grudgingly. Still unwilling to be obligated, but given how much rope he'd given her to hang him with, a promise not to betray him would be invaluable. Worth letting her escape _again_? No, he needed more than that. He had to come up with a way to get her truly under his control, out of danger. He didn't want her dead, he wanted her alive and _his_. He considered the idea, debating how he could mess with the terms of this agreement.

Something struck him and he nearly crowed in delight. "Yvette Therese Sinclaire, if I may choose your destination, then we have a deal," he said lightly.

"I don't care, as long as it's on THIS side of the lines. And you leave me there! No immediately snatching me back!"

"Of course," he said innocently. She was suspicious, good. Misdirect. "I shall spirit you away to a new life in a new country, in exchange for your silence and your payment of the imbalance for the trips. Though I wish to stay in reality for the rest of the evening to celebrate. Perhaps we'll go dancing!"

She laughed despite herself, came up with conditions. Every deal had to have the conditions. Get those out of the way and perhaps she won't notice the huge gaping hole. "Fine. If you behave yourself and don't snatch or kill anyone. I'm not starting a new life in a jail cell!"

"Deal," he said, and he felt another jolt of adrenaline, this time carrying a heavy wash of sexual excitement. He had her!

He felt lighthearted and satisfied. He loved this part. He was a little sorry he couldn't go all out and snatch her properly. Or perhaps he could. Wasn't the idea to fake her capture? He grinned. This would be fun. "Well, then. We shall have to make it look good, shan't we? Can't have anyone thinking I've gone soft on my favorite little summoner, I'd never hear the end of it. Now be a good girl and take off that charm."

Reluctantly, she did so.

"Destroy it," he ordered, and sighed inwardly with relief as she did so. At least that danger was gone. He'd have to make certain she never had reason to make another. And while he was at it, he should make sure she didn't do anything else stupid. He knew how much line energy she was capable of channeling as a teenager. It could still be dangerous to let her tap the line they would travel. Luckily, a hunter of familiars is always prepared.

"Now…take down your circle, Evie." He dug out the charmed silver bracelet he always carried just for such occasions as she gulped, squared her shoulders bravely, and took down her circle. It was always wonderful when they did it willingly, and their fear was intoxicating.

He couldn't help it, he took a deep breath of her scent. As always, he caught her fear, and under it, _her._ She couldn't possibly know how incredibly good she smelled. Demons were fairly indifferent to appearance, but scent...scent was irresistible. And there was something about hers that had always attracted him, something that spoke to him on a deeper level than witches usually did. It was dangerous, that scent, but he couldn't help himself.

He held out the charmed silver bracelet. "Put it on," he said. "It seals the bargain. I won't have you changing your mind."

Eying him suspiciously, she did so- and realized immediately what he'd done.

Ash gave her an anticipatory grin at her suddenly shocked and dismayed expression, and shook his head as if disappointed in her gullibility. "You are such a trusting little fool, Evie," he said.

She screamed as he reached for her. She wanted to fake a demon capture? He was happy to oblige. She'd find out soon enough how much trouble she was really in. He let her dodge and roll away, toying with her as he took down the confusion cloak. She bolted for the door, and he coalesced in front of it to block her escape. She fell into a crouch, panting with fear and fury.

Algaliarept arrived shortly thereafter. Time to make his move, couldn't have Al catching his new witch. He misted into existence again behind her, claiming her even as she fought and screamed and cursed.

Al saw that Ash had beaten him to the prize, and glowered. Ash knew how satisfying it would have been for Al to catch Evie first, and wondered how long Al would have kept her alive. Probably long enough to make what he, Ash, had done to Greg look merciful. But Al had no interest in stealing the witch, as he coudn't possibly sell her without word getting out about his Rachel, and Evie's very existence lessened Rachel's value. Not by much, but Al was a proud bastard.

Heh, and broke. Perhaps Al would have sold her back to Ash once he'd had his fun, though she would hardly be in any condition to be much use. No, he would never risk Newt finding out that Al had killed another potential student for her. Al was not exactly in her good graces to begin with. Ash congratulated himself again for having the foresight to mark the witch and give him the edge. She'd never know how bad it could have gone for her.

The two demons regarded each other with professional smiles, ignoring the witch that kicked and shouted between them. "Congratulations," Al said lightly. "It only took you, what, thirty six years?"

Ash's smile was suddenly strained. "Good things come to those who wait," he said. "And I intend to make this one work off every damned minute of it," he added, stroking the witch's hair. She went momentarily still, and he caught the tang of her fear under the outrage. Good. He wasn't lying. She'd pay, all right.

Algaliarept smelled it too and grinned, approaching them. Evie pressed back into Ash to avoid Al's hand, something Ash found quite interesting. She winced as he traced the scar on her cheek, and Ash could feel her trembling. He laughed when she suddenly bit at his hand, and Al gave her a stinging slap. "Careful, Al. She still bites. She's not trained yet."

"Give her to me," Al suggested, fixing his red eyes her and licking his lips. "I'd be happy to whip her into shape for you. I'd do _this _one for free."

Evie made a sound of disgust, standing stiff with anger and fear and leaning as far away from Al as she could manage. Ash felt a surge of jealousy at the thought of Al getting his hands on his witch, and wondered if he was feeling a touch _too_ possessive for his own good. He considered the offer. "Perhaps. Maybe a little time with you would convince her of _my _better qualities," he said.

His witch began to struggle again. "I swear by all that is holy, I am going to fucking murder both of you!" she shouted. "I'll figure out a way!"

"So feisty, Evie?" Ash jerked the witch against him so he could stage-whisper in her ear, "I know what scares you, Yvette Therese Sinclaire. I could break you in the time it takes to whisper your name. But I am a patient, patient demon, Evie. I like to take things slow. Do them properly." He bit her neck and the witch screamed and shuddered. It hadn't even been a painful bite, Ash thought smugly.

Al's eyes glittered appreciatively. "Do you mind if I stop by later? If you won't let me help, at least let me _watch._"

Evie sputtered something incoherent, but it couldn't have been flattering. Ash chuckled. "You'll hear her screaming, never fear. The entire Ever After will echo with it. Come along, my little witch. It's time to begin your new life." They still had to walk the block or so it would take to get to the line, but Ash wasn't worried that anyone would intervene. Everyone knew that Evie Sinclaire dealt in demons. Everyone knew that there were no _old _demon summoners.

There were plenty of bystanders to witness Yvette Therese Sinclair's abduction. And nobody would doubt that Yvette Therese Sinclair was not going happily or willingly. For the hell of it, he and Al turned themselves into giant black gargoyle-like fiends, winged and clawed and fanged, gouging slashes in the concrete as they walked. It was always a form that freaked the mortals out, guaranteeing their path was free.

Ash hoped they'd make the evening news, given the number of camera phones pointed their way, and grinned. He'd certainly kept his end of the bargain. Her old life was well and truly over. Her new life? He'd just have to make certain that he was an inextricable part of it. He had thirteen whole hours to figure out how to do it.


	3. Chapter 3

_Reviews are love, you know. I simply cannot resist them..._

_This is dedicated to Unnoticeable Person and Assija, for convincing me that it might be worthwhile to do a complete retelling. And it was incredibly fun to muck around in Ash's head a little more. This isn't as polished as my other works, but my life just got a whole lot busier and I have a ton of other ideas in my head that I'd like to work on. So up it goes, and I'm still happy to hear any suggestions for improvement!  
_

_And FYI, the rating just leaped well back into the M category. Hee! *bunny ear kiss-kiss!* _

**In Which Ash Shows Off His Demon Pad**

The witch was absolutely furious as they rode the lines. Cheeky little thing, she deserved everything that was coming to her. He was grateful that he'd thought to put that bracelet on her. He took a moment to give her soul a good goosing, just to get her even more riled up. He couldn't wait to see the look on her face when she figured it out how he'd tricked her.

He held her a moment longer after they rematerialized in his home, enjoying how the heat of her struggles enhanced her scent. He took a moment to savor it again, and felt another flush of desire and satisfaction. The thirty-odd years he'd hunted her weren't long by demon standards, but certainly longer than any witch had ever eluded him before. He couldn't resist rubbing it in, and whispered, "At last, I have you. It's been thirty years, Evie, and I finally have you."

He didn't even know she could curse like that. He wondered if she'd been taking lessons from Al.

He released her and couldn't help laughing at her expression. She looked mad enough to spit brimstone. "Told you we'd make it look good," he said, wondering how long it would take her to figure out he'd only been messing with her.

"What?" she asked blankly. He saw her hands flex and clench again. She was out for blood, this one. He just grinned until he saw comprehension hit her hard. "You mean to say _that was all an_ _act_?"

He shrugged, looking innocent. "I have no idea if you're a good actress or not," he said reasonably, which was true. "I didn't want to find out the hard way." _And the easy way was just too much fun to pass up. _

"Oh, you're about to find out the hard way," she growled, still advancing as if she wanted to pummel him. "God damn it Ash, you gave me several heart attacks back there! What you said to Al—" She shuddered.

"Oh, come now, you didn't believe all that, did you?" he said lightly. "I told you I don't share my possessions. Do you really think I'd let him have you for even a moment?"

"As far as actors go, Ash, you're one of the finest out there. If you_ ever _do that to me again—"

"You'll what?" he asked cheekily. He was curious to see whether her threats were as creative as her insults, but she was distracted by the trophy room.

"Wow."

"Yes, welcome to my humble abode," he said, indicating the room.

He was proud of the space he'd carved out of the Ever After. Five thousand years gives one a shitload of free time. He was also rather proud of the objects he'd accumulated, though they weren't all that important. Ash fancied himself a bit of an artist at heart, and enjoyed collecting things that were as delicate and intricate as the minds he played with. A few of the pieces here were his own work, products of a time long past when even the hunt had palled and he'd spent the better part of two centuries simply holed up alone. He didn't like to think about it. Demons had not been born immortal, it had just happened, and there came a point when every demon faced the grim reality of dealing with the long, endless darkness stretching ahead. One either found a way to deal, or one self destructed, slowly and inexorably. Half of the inhabitants of the Ever After were still on the second path, as their society continued to decay.

He lit the fireplace and sat, waiting for her to figure out they weren't going back to reality any time soon. Sure enough, the room only distracted her for about a minute before she asked, "Ash…why are we still here? Deal was, you take me…"

"You said I could choose the destination, Evie. I have a specific destination in mind- someplace nice and warm, never fear. I know how you hate the cold."

"Oh, god," she said, turning pale and looking ill. "What did I miss_ this_ time?"

"Why, Evie, you know I can't cross the lines in daylight. I'm afraid that in Australia, the sun just rose."

"So send me back alone, then! I know you can do that!"

"What, and miss the chance to enjoy a trip to reality on someone else's dime?" he asked. "You did say you'd pay for the trips, love. _ Four _of them- you were quite specific. So why don't you make yourself comfortable? You're stuck with me here until the sun sets in…hmm," he checked his watch theatrically, "….about thirteen hours."

He'd expected her to rage at him, defy him, tell him how unfairly he'd tricked her, but she simply sat on his coffee table, looking more pissed off at herself than at him. Intriguing. Most women would be begging for mercy right about now, but not his Evie. She blamed herself. He wondered sometimes how she thought about him. Sometimes he could swear she believed he was more like a force of nature than a sentient being, from the way she dealt with him.

He let her stew in silence for awhile, waiting for her to break and have one of her panic attacks. He fancied he could see her trembling a little. It was tiresome, but he supposed he had only myself to blame, after all. He'd have to do something about them. But for now, he would just let her have her terror, and have her cry, and then-

"Thank you," she said softly.

_Thank you...? Thank you? What the hell?_ "For what?" _This one I've gotta hear..._

"For offering me a choice. Even if…even if the options weren't to my liking. At least it was a choice."

He humphed in surprise. There really was a lot going on in her head that he simply had no clue about. It gave all of his interactions with her an unpredictable edge that he greatly enjoyed. Or maybe she was just trying to play nice and flatter him, in the hopes that the next thirteen hours wouldn't be the humbling experience she had in store. He decided to feign concern for her well being. "Yes, well, don't thank me just yet. You did say you'd take the smut for the trips. I thought I would give you a chance to recover and wind down first, because you will find it a bit unpleasant."

She looked at him apprehensively. "What is it going to feel like?"

"If you resist? It will be painful beyond anything you've ever felt before," he warned.

"And if I don't?"

He shrugged. "It's a little weird, but it doesn't hurt. Not even the first time," he added, grinning crookedly. "Are you ready?"


	4. Chapter 4

**In Which Smut Is Encountered**

She just looked resigned, as if she'd decided to just endure rather than fight. He hoped she'd get her spark back soon, or the next thirteen hours wouldn't be nearly as fun. "Hell, why not? This day has been one disaster after another. Do your worst."

"I don't really think you want my _worst_, dove" he replied, before he rose in a graceful motion and approached her. She let him, and he was surprised she didn't even resist when he cozied up behind her for the transfer. She had no idea how this was done, or that it didn't even require physical contact, not if she had his mark. But hey, any excuse to invade her personal space was fine by him. He loved to make her squirm.

She whimpered and he could tell she was tensing up to resist the imbalance he was transferring to her soul. "Don't resist it, Evie," he whispered. "Accept it." There was no reason to cause her undue pain, he thought. Not while she was being so very cooperative. She tried to relax, and he found himself tightening his grip slightly as she shook and endured it.

"The equivalent of four trips through the lines," he said. "It's done." She'd gone limp in his arms, her breathing ragged. It _was _a bit much to have given her all at once, he thought. It had been so long ago since his own soul had been clean...but nobody ever forgot what that first time felt like. "The first time is always the worst," he found himself murmuring, as she clutched at his arms and tried to regain her equilibrium. "It becomes second nature all too quickly."

She didn't reply. He wondered if she was going to have another panic attack over it, but he didn't feel any tension or catch the unique scent of panic. "It is the price we all pay for our continued existence," he murmured, distracted now by the scents he could catch. Fear. Confusion. And slipping in, almost unnoticeable, the bare hints of a basic physiological response to simply being next to him. She could invoke demon magic, he remembered, and wondered suddenly how close to a demon woman she really was.

The thought was distracting, intoxicating. The image of her licking his blood from her finger suddenly arose in his memory, and he felt a surge of pure desire. Unbidden, the memories of the power exchange they had shared, which he had buried safely out of reach, suddenly surged to the forefront of his mind. He felt her react, then realized she'd simply stood up straighter and was tugging at his arms.

She sensed something was up. Her body was definitely responding, even if her conscious mind was unaware of it. He felt her heart begin to quicken, caught the new scent of her arousal, and almost snorted with laughter when she said, "You can...let go now," in a voice that trembled slightly. .

_Yvette Therese Sinclaire, there is no force on Earth, Heaven, or the Ever After that would make me let go of you at this moment. _ "I _could,_" he replied.

"Ash," she said, exasperated, then suddenly added, "Oh_, shit._ I didn't make any conditions, did I?"

"You did...but they apply only on the other side of the lines," he told her. He brushed a finger lightly over his mark and felt her breath hitch. Oh, she knew she was in trouble now. She stood absolutely still, as if cataloging her reactions for the first time, or as if she thought that if she didn't move, the predator would pass her by.

Not likely.

"Ash-"

Was she going to resist? Would it matter to him? He remembered the power pull: his teasing, her challenge, his contemptuous response, her sudden fire escalating things out of control. Would she yield to him this time? The thought of his witch made helpless by her own heritage made him ache with pleasure and anticipation.

"You're mine," he said. "For the next thirteen hours. No restrictions. No limits. No conditions." His finger touched the charmed band around her wrist. "No magic. No escape."

"I-I...um..." she said in a small voice, confused and uncertain, but not fearful. He was a little surprised. She wasn't afraid?

He paused a moment to consider his control. It wouldn't do to lose himself again with her, no matter how sweet she would be. But his own body had other ideas. Recklessly he plunged on, only half hearing the words he was saying now. They were pulled deep from within him. One did not attempt rape with a demon woman. There were words, actions, more than mere custom. A male had to make his claim, state his case. He had bested her with wit and strength, and she would either accept it, or she wouldn't.

"You took my imbalance. You wear my mark. You're mine. _Say it,_" he demanded quietly, huskily, his fingers tightening around her. She shivered, a full body shiver that made his breath catch. She was responding. She would accept him, he was certain of it. She fought with her instincts for a bit, halfheartedly trying to deny the direction this was leading her, and he sensed it the moment that he won her.

"I'm yours," she whispered, the sound still carrying a hint of startled confusion, and he sighed with pleasure.


	5. Chapter 5

**In Which Smut Most Definitely Continues **

"Again," he murmured huskily against her neck, his lips brushing her skin lightly.

She leaned her head back to give him better access, surrendering. "I'm yours," she repeated again, and he heard desire moaning in her voice now.

He hadn't even activated the bond yet, and she was yielding. Ash felt suddenly lightheaded as she subtly shifted her posture to lean into him. He wanted to taste her, devour her, and he nearly sank his teeth into her neck, stopping himself in time. Not yet, not the first time, he thought, feeling her clench fingers into his arms. He had to see her, to see the surrender in her eyes, to see her face slack with desire for him, and turned her face up toward his.

"Again," he whispered hoarsely, twining his fingers in her hair. She stared back with eyes that were wide and still a little startled at the unfamiliar sensations he roused in her. He lightly brushed the scar he'd given her, saw her lashes flutter. "Say it, Evie."

"Kaviashmedaeva," she said, and he felt an almost painful rush of adrenaline. He closed his eyes and swallowed. For the first time he wondered whether this had been a good idea. No, of course it hadn't, but when he met her eyes again he couldn't have stopped himself even if he'd been summoned then and there. "I'm yours."

He kissed her fiercely, possessive and hungry. How could he even have considered for an instant giving this witch to Algaliarept or anyone else? She was his, he had claimed her, she had accepted. For an instant he was tempted to remove her silver bonds, but it might still be too dangerous-

He gasped in surprise and groaned as her fingers found the five scars on his chest. She traced hesitant fingers over them, her caress tentative and seeking. He felt his heart race, and encouraged her by pulling her tightly against his erection. He knew she felt the lure of her heritage. Were she true demon kin, she could have kindled her scars on him to life, in a fiery wave of pleasure that would bring him to his knees. She knew something was possible, expected, but had nothing but instinct to guide her actions. He was beyond startled when she said, distantly, as if reciting something from long ago, "You wear my mark, too."

He closed his eyes again, shocked, feeling the force of her words, even through her uncertainty. "You took it willingly," she continued, though he hadn't, not exactly. He'd teased her by making her mark him, though she had no idea of the significance of the gesture. She had surprised him by tasting his blood at the time. She was beginning to worry him a little now with the power of her faraway voice. "You're _mine_."

He made an incoherent sound of need. It had been so long, so very long since he'd conquered one of his own kind. He forgot for a moment that she was only a witch; her scent, her words, her reactions, her fire, they were all kin. He bore her to the floor, kissing her hungrily, brutally, feeling her yield and wrap herself around him. She returned his passion with equal enthusiasm. He tore aside the fabric that covered his demon mark, covering it with his mouth. He sent all the energy of his powerful _chi_ bubbling through it. She cried out in ecstasy as he pulled it back before the silver neutralized all of it, getting a taste of the heady flavor of her desire. Unable to stop himself, he shoved the remains of the material away to capture the soft warmth of her breast, his hands exploring her torso and hip.

She still caressed his scars as if she knew there was something she could do, though he knew that she was powerless while bound by the silver. She wanted to, he could tell. He paused to pull off his own shirt, letting her explore his bare skin for a moment to see what she would do next. She stroked the scars again and kissed one, rasping her warm tongue over it and whispering, "Say it, Ash."

She bit him then, hard, and he shuddered, suddenly more than a little frightened at how powerfully he was responding to this. How could she possibly know what she was doing? She was stepping tentatively, blindly, but the demon in her knew what it wanted. She wanted him, she wanted him to acknowledge her power over him, even helpless and bound as she was. She had accepted his dominance, and now she was testing him, leading him one step further into that strange demon dance of fear and power and tentative trust. "You don't know," he gasped. "Evie, you don't know what you're ask—"

"_Say it_, Ash," she demanded again, fingernails raking his biceps possessively. "You are_ mine._" She bit him again and buried her nails in his shoulders, pulling him back toward her even as he pulled away. "_My_ demon."

"Yvette Therese Sinclaire," he rasped, meeting her eyes and shivering. Just what had he awoken in her? It had been a game, at first, but now... "I..."

He kissed her again, hard, desperate, pinning her to the floor. Challenge his dominance? He couldn't let her, he wouldn't give in. She was only a witch, and he was going to take her quickly, and viciously. He bit her throat hard and forced her legs apart, hearing the fabric of her skirt tear. He pinned her arms above her head as she struggled. Her resistance only increased his lust, and he thrust his erection roughly against her groin as a harbinger of what was to come. He sent another ripple of energy through the mark and felt her struggles cease as she cried out against his lips.

"Not so easy, is it?" she panted, and he realized she wasn't struggling _against_ him, she was merely testing his strength and determination. She wrapped her leg around his waist to give him better access for his thrusts even as she tried to free her pinned hands.

He tensed, lost in a mix of emotions. She taunted him! He had her powerless under him, had forced her to accept him, and she taunted him! As she'd always done, calling him time and again but never letting him touch her, never allowing him near her save that one, passionate night where she had challenged him, then invaded his private soul He was angry, frustrated, and overcome with another urge to twist her to his will. This, too, was part of the dance. He couldn't have stopped himself now if the two worlds had collided then and there. "You want a demon lover, Evie?" he whispered in her ear. He would say it, damned be the consequences. "Very well..._I'm yours_."

He sent his magic spiraling fast and almost cruelly into her, watching her twist and shiver with it until the silver took effect. He expressed his own hunger by exploring her body, her breasts, her erotically scented skin as she convulsed and screamed with the burning pleasure of it. He felt her hands twine themselves into her hair as he teased her and tasted her. He paused to send the magic tingling tantalizingly close to her center, and she groaned a wild, anticipatory sound. She began to tug at the bracelet. "Release me," she moaned, as he explored the soft, vulnerable skin of her inner thigh, nipping and savoring the intoxicating scents of her flesh. "Take the silver off, Ash."

"No," he growled, pinning the wrist with the bracelet down again and smiling viciously at her. "I like you this way," he added, and she sighed with pleasure and not a little frustration. He captured her lips again, teasing and tasting, and sent waves of his magic arcing from his fingers to into her soft skin. "_Mine._"

"Shall I plead...?" she asked, as she wound his hair in her fingers again. They tightened suddenly as he sent the line through her, possessive and nearly painful. Her voice was playful, teasing, breathless. By asking him, she was insisting it was her choice, that he hadn't reduced her to begging yet. Oh, but he would. The thought made him simply purr, sending another fresh jolt of desire to his groin. He couldn't wait much longer now, and when she repeated, "Release me," and struggled against his firm hold on her wrist, he nearly shredded her skirt in his haste to disrobe her. He sent his own garments away with magic, leaving only one small obstacle to his purpose.

He noticed that she was reaching to touch him, and pinned her other hand with an evil smile. "Please, Ash, let me-"

"No," he purred, luxuriating in the feel of skin against skin. He wouldn't let her. He would do all the taking in this encounter. He knew what she desperately wanted, but he would show her that he held the power, and would take what he desired from her in his own sweet time. He bit her neck, much harder this time, and she cried out in surprise and pleasure. She tensed again as he surrounded her with his magic, teasing and taunting and holding back, waiting for her to plead with him, beg him. "Again," he murmured, his voice hitching, his eyes closed.

"Ash, _please,_" she begged, and writhed beneath him as he flooded her with sensation and power again. He took advantage of her momentary distraction to tear away her panties, nearly ready to burst in his eagerness. He could smell how ready she was, and he reached to explore her with his fingers, only to find that she was forbidding him entry by pressing her thighs together. He smiled again at even this little challenge. He captured her lips for another deceptively gentle kiss, then used brute force to enter her sharply, roughly. She screamed and clenched around him as he withdrew and plunged into her again.

A groan of pure animal pleasure burst from his throat as he began to build momentum. She fought him, resisted, arched and twisted and struggled to free her arms, and he continued to punish her, conquer her. She cried out with pleasure at his every thrust, the sound a sweet contrast to the desperation of her resistance, and his movements grew more reckless and vigorous. He lost himself in the sweet heat of her flesh, her sweet scent, the sweet arousal that his magic carried back to him. He wanted more of her, he wanted to conquer her fully. "Surrender," he whispered. "Surrender to me, Evie."

And to his surprise, she did. She melted against him, accepting him, rose to meet his movements. Her wordless gasps and cries became pleas. She begged him to release her from her magical fetters, to let her touch him, to let her inside. She begged him not to stop, not to slow his pace. She begged him to send his magic deeper inside her, to invade the heart of her. She was wild in her surrender, and he realized it was no surrender at all. She was demanding, even while yielding, and it was all he could do not to comply with her pleas to remove the enchanted silver. He would keep that much of his power over her, but as for the rest of it, he was only too happy to oblige. He forced more energy into her than any witch could hold, send it exploring deep within her, inside and out, and she screamed and convulsed with it, demanding more and yet more from him.

He had not yet found her limits when she suddenly tensed and shook with the force of her release, his name on her lips in a wild, desperate cry. Even through the silver, he could feel the sheer power locked within her, shackled but still dangerous. He had released her hands and now her nails drew long furrows down his back as she came.

The sight and sensations of her body clenching around him, of her helpless bliss under him, was enough to send him right over the brink himself. It took only a moment for his own pleasure to burst free, his cry loud and hoarse as he released his seed within her. Her body responded exactly as he expected, locking down on him in an almost painful embrace, trapping him within her as he collapsed, panting. His magic still swirled around them both, connecting them just as intimately as their physical union.

He lay there dazed for a moment, completely lost in the experience. As he caught his breath, he realized that she was now stroking his hair. He glanced at her briefly, saw that she was still lost in her own haze of pleasure, and shivered a little as she sent a hand softly down his back. The gesture was dangerously affectionate, and he knew he should get up, but he simply couldn't make himself move. He told himself that it was due to her physical hold on his manhood, but he could easily have freed himself if necessary by simply dematerializing.

So long...it had been so long. Millenia. His thoughts wandered as he lay on her, his ear pressed to her heart and listening to its quick pace. He let himself relax in a way that he hadn't in centuries. Even if this were only an illusion, and surely it was, he would enjoy it. There were no demon women, not anymore, but Evie...she was close enough that he couldn't even find a single difference beyond her limited experience. And she had pleased him, and he had pleased her. There was the basis for an alliance here.

He wondered what she was thinking. Was she content? Would she be upset? Perhaps he had better get up before she realized what she had done and pushed him away. He made a movement as if to do so, but she growled- growled!- at him. She'd made grumpy noises before, but this was a true demon growl, one that reminded him just who held whose bits hostage at the moment, and he simply sighed and let his head fall back again. He nuzzled her neck, kissing her there again and letting her wild scent fill his senses.


	6. Chapter 6

**In Which Ash Would Really Like To Take Back The Next Few Minutes**

* * *

All too soon the sweat began to cool on his skin and reality began to intrude on his fantasy. He gave a little tug, but found himself still stuck tight. "Evie?" he asked softly.

"Mmm...?" she replied distractedly, perhaps lost in a pleasant fantasy of her own. "Sorry, I don't know how long it will take. It's the first time I've..." she stopped suddenly, embarrassed.

Ash lifted his head and stared at her in surprise. "Seriously? But you've been with men before, I can tell." The thought of her with other men was suddenly infuriating, and he tried to push down the dangerous jealousy and what it implied.

"Yeah. Are you kidding? After you told me...well, it was one of the first things I corrected once I could walk again."

Ash grunted appreciatively. She'd been a sweet, innocent little virgin when they'd met, and he'd told her how that would increase her value. It was a lie, of course, as even the most sexually experienced witch would never be prepared for the realities of intercourse with a demon. But she'd believed him, and gone right out to fix it, and he knew something else, as well.

"But you did not enjoy yourself," he purred happily, kissing the soft, soft skin of her neck and imagining how it would feel to pierce that soft skin with fangs. How she would scream in ecstasy and hold him close as he drank. The thought was intoxicating. He knew a hundred and one ways to pleasure a woman (or a man, for that matter...thousands of years without women had made them all rather less picky about such things) and had thirteen hours in which to explore them with her.

"How do _you_ know?" she snapped, indignant. "It was _fine!_"

"Fine. _Fine? _ I am the first to make you scream, I can tell," he said again, smugly, giving another little tug to remind her that, deny it all she wanted, her body had enjoyed every moment of his embrace. "And now you will think of _me_, every time you make love to another. You will yearn for my touch, burn for my magic..." Her breath caught as he surged with renewed interest inside her. She would forever be his, claimed, marked, and now ruined for any mere mortal's touch. He felt himself growing hard again at the thought.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, gloat all you want," she replied dryly, not denying it. Her voice was becoming more her own again as she began to return to the reality of the situation. The demon within was receding and she was pure Evie once more. "Now will you take this damned bracelet off of me?"

"I cannot _imagine _why I would want to do that, Evie," he said, his tongue darting out to lick a slow line up her neck, and he was delighted when she shivered with pleasure. "Not when your desperate pleas are such music to my ears. It was almost worth all the waiting, all the trouble you've caused me, just to hear you begging me for it." He was fully aroused again, and her muscles had released enough for him to begin to move again, sliding teasingly slowly. She closed her eyes for a moment, sighing, tensing as if to resist and then relaxing once more.

"I have a sneaking suspicion that there's an ulterior motive here, Ash," she said.

"Hmm, such a suspicious nature you have," he said innocently. He felt another surge of triumph. Evie was fully herself, naked, under him, yielding to him. It wasn't just her instincts that desired him, or she'd be screaming and freaking out. He increased his pace a little, and she swallowed and clenched a little tighter around him. She wanted him again, though she was trying not to admit it in her typical Evie fashion. But she wasn't fighting him, which was permission enough. "One might think you didn't trust me, Evie."

"Should I?" she asked equally innocently. "You don't trust _me_, after all."

"I don't need to trust you, as long as you're wearing that bracelet," he said, as if that explained everything. He wondered how long it would take him to make her come again, and whether he could do so without magic or triggering her demon nature. It would be a wonderful triumph that he could hold over her in the future.

"I feel a pout coming on," she said, glaring at him. "Are you at least going to let me up?"

"Why?" he purred in her ear, deftly slipping a hand between them to massage her center, catching once again the delicious scent of her arousal, now mingled with his own musky seed.

"Because..._aah!_" He smiled at her lapse of control, as she jerked against his fingers and lifted her hips to give him better access. "Because I want a turn, damnit!"

Should he indulge her? By Cormell's undead balls, the question was really, how could he resist? Ash chuckled. "It's been such a long time since I've taken a willing witch, I've almost forgotten-"

She tensed under him and he glanced at her, realizing what he'd just said. Shit. Shit. He'd become too relaxed, too comfortable, and had said exactly the wrong thing.


	7. Chapter 7

**In Which Ash Gets Really, Really, REALLY Pissed Off.**

"Evie," he said.

"Ash." She was staring wide-eyed at him, the spell entirely broken. She suddenly began to struggle in earnest, and he caught the tang of her sudden terror. "Get off. Get off! Get off me!" Perfect. Now she was going to panic. Ash released her, watched her dart away and cover herself. His heart began to pound as well as he watched, his face blank and expressionless. She collapsed to her knees, panting and unable to calm herself. He'd seen it before, had been unmoved every time. Now...right now, it suddenly seemed obscene. Weak. Was she so damaged that she couldn't control her reactions?

Worse. He felt a foreign emotion bubble up like bile. She was staring at him in horror. Shock. Disgust. As if he were an abomination.

It hurt. He cursed himself for the fool he was, to have indulged in a fantasy for even one instant. Even knowing it had been a fantasy, could never be more than a fantasy, it still burned in his throat like acid. Like betrayal.

"You knew what I am," he said quietly, crossing his arms. "You gave yourself to me, Evie. If you are going to accuse me of enchanting you or raping you, I swear by the two worlds colliding that I will-"

"Judy," she gasped, her voice ugly and on the verge of breaking. "Did you rape her?"

An irrational desire to wound her rose in him, and he answered, "Yes." He saw her flinch as if struck, and continued cruelly, his voice empty of emotion and any hint of remorse. "It's effective. I raped them all, Evie. Mind, body, soul. I broke them. I tortured them. I crushed their wills. I ripped their souls from them. I sold them to demons crueler than I. They serve as familiars, their souls blackened beyond redemption, until the line energy they are forced to hold drives them finally to insanity, and they are discarded and unmourned. Is that what you wished to hear?"

He watched her collapse, shivering, and his anger grew. "And...and you would have..."

"Yes," he replied. "I would have done the same to you, Evie." He thought of the night she had escaped, how he would have punished her for defying him and forcing him to burn himself to claim her. Oh, yes, he'd have done all of that, and more. "Then," he added, almost as an afterthought, but he wasn't sure that she'd registered that.

She stared up at him in horror, as if she had had no idea that he was capable of such cruelty. He felt incredulous at her shock, and was suddenly angry enough to kill her. He could, he thought. She was his, in his domain without any protection from his wrath. He had only to fling her mutilated body to reality to fulfill his part of their bargain. There was nothing to stop him.

"This is what I am, Yvette Therese Sinclaire." He began to approach, one inevitable step after another. "You claimed me, and marked me. Do you renounce me now?"

She was frozen as he reached her, and he jerked her up and against him. "_Do you?_" he asked, feeling her shy away from the strength in his trembling grasp. He ripped aside the blanket she hid behind.

"Ash-" she pleaded. "Don't!"

NOW she wanted to plead with him? _Now? _ He shoved her hard, and she stumbled backward, knocking over a vase as she struck the wall hard. He was on her in an instant, one hand on her throat, pinning her with his body. "Say you do, Yvette Therese Sinclaire. Renounce your claim," he hissed at her, forgetting she wasn't a demon, forgetting that she hadn't known what she was doing, what her words had meant. She had claimed him as a lover, and now she was denying the claim, denying him. It was worse than a betrayal, it was utterly humiliating. He would renounce her in turn, make her less than she was, make her lower than the twisted spawn that roamed the wasted surface of the Ever After. "It will be effortless to break you. You have given so much of yourself to me already."

"No!" she cried, struggling helplessly. Even now, she had no idea what she had done, and it infuriated him even more.

"Did you trust me, Evie? Did you think yourself safe? I have no mercy, Evie. I can crush you, and I would do so without remorse. I can slip inside your mind and take hold of your will. I could make you do_ anything_ I wanted. I could make you love me, Evie, love me so blindly that you would die for me. I could rape you, body and soul, and you would _beg m_e for it." He leaned closer to smile a blood-chilling smile. "As Judy did."

"Stop it!" she shouted desperately. She redoubled her struggles, tried to pull his hands away from her throat.

"I would take pleasure in your pain," he whispered viciously in her ear, and sent the burning heat of his anger into her through the mark. He coated her in his blazing aura, crushing it against hers as she screamed in pain. He invaded her sex with his fingers. _"_You cannot imagine what I could do to you. There is absolutely nothing you could do to stop me."

"Stop it!" She shouted, writhing and trapped. "You've m-made your point, damnit!"

"Have I?" he asked, his anger burning like cold fire. He brought his fingers to her face, the mingled scents of their shared pleasure now tainted by her insult. "You gave yourself to me willingly, Yvette Therese Sinclaire. You demanded I do the same. I am tired of your games, witch!"

"_You're _tired of games?" she shouted back, eyes blazing with sudden fury. "Well, I am tired of being your goddamn plaything, _Kaviaeshmedaeva_!"

His eyes widened at the insult, and narrowed with renewed outrage. "Plaything?" he growled, unwittingly squeezing her throat hard enough that she began to struggle for breath. How dare she? "After what you...what we..." He was lost for words. After the ritual, after the dance, after the give and take, the...the fragile trust...? To call it simply a game, to reduce him to a common demon seducing a common familiar, after what they had just shared?

"And what game are you playing with me now?" he demanded suddenly. "Fine, you wish to play demon and summoner again, witch? I'll show you how that game ends!"

"I'm not..." She clutched at his fingers around her throat, perhaps only now realizing that she had pushed him too far. "God, no!"

"Do you know what it feels like to lose your soul, Yvette Therese Sinclaire?" he asked darkly, and his hand once again hovered over her mark. He would steal her soul. And then he would exile it, banish it to somewhere lonely and cold, awaiting a forgiveness that would never come. "Let me show you."

She screamed in mortal terror as he began the process of ripping her soul from the moorings of her flesh. In the breath between one instant and the next, he felt her hand at his chest, her fingers pressing his scar. And somehow, even though the charmed silver, she sent his power back into him through her mark. A searing, agonizing pain ripped through his entire being. He screamed and reeled away, stumbling and knocking over a cabinet, crashing sideways and gouging a deep cut into his shoulder. He fell, gasping, smelling the reek of burnt amber and his own seared flesh. He felt real fear for the first time in centuries as magic, her magic, crackled through him furiously, undirected, ebbing away only because he regained enough wit to trap it and purge it..

He heard her fall, heard her sobbing, and suddenly understood that what he had written off as impossible was true. Evie wasn't just a witch who could kindle demon magic. She was a true demon woman, and she had just about killed him. Her instincts had sensed his attack, had reacted with all the fury a demon woman could command, had bypassed the ley lines and simply sucked the power she'd needed to repell him straight from his attack, and perhaps from the air itself. She had kindled the link between them even through the fetters that bound her, and had driven the energy straight into his soul, as he had done to her.

Had she not been bound by silver, he'd be a pile of ashes.


	8. Chapter 8

**In Which Ash Is Suddenly Pretty Sympathetic Toward What Al Has Had To Put Up With**

He prepared a counterattack for her next strike, but Evie was crumpled into a heap, holding a hand that was terribly burnt. To bypass the magic of the bracelet, she'd done something that had not only blistered but blackened her fingers. The bracelet had burnt a furious welt around her wrist. She shook with the shock of it. She looked like a child, and he realized with a start that in demon terms, she_ was_ a child, an untrained, unguided child who had just discovered the raw power she could command and was absolutely terrified of it.

The stink of burnt amber fairly billowed off of her, off them both, as he tried to regain his balance. He made it to his knees, dizzy, and decided to stay kneeling rather than risk stumbling about like a drunkard. Evie wasn't going anywhere any time soon.

"What did you do that for?" she complained bitterly, looking green and sick through her tears of pain. "I tell you, I have no idea why I have done a single goddamned thing since I got here, including whatever _that _was. You didn't have to go postal on me, Ash! How would you feel if you'd found yourself eagerly fucking someone you shouldn't even _like_, without even knowing_ why_?"

Ash coughed at the repellant reek of demon magic, adding to it by healing his smarting shoulder. "I imagine that I would be feeling a little like I am now," he said gruffly, and discovered he should probably sit down again before he threw up..

"Yeah, well, _I_ didn't rape your friends," she hissed back angrily.

"No," he agreed, his anger still bubbling beneath the surface, though now it was tempered a little by the wonder and astonishment at the discovery. "I suppose I should be a little more sympathetic. At least, I might be if I knew _why_ you happily screwed me, then fucked with my head, then tried to kill me," he spat.

"Gee, Ash, sounds like you've been dealing in demons." she replied with equal scathing fury in her voice. "Fun, isn't it?"

Ash was still silent for a long time, calculating. He had just won, seduced, then nearly destroyed the prize of a lifetime our of sheer spite and pride. How to proceed? Could he keep her? Could he tame her, bend her to his will? Would she prove too much for him to handle? Could he keep her from Newt? His thoughts turned briefly to Algaliarept and his witch, and he realized that Rachel must be another demon woman herself. No wonder Al took such drastic steps to keep her safe, even as her outrageous antics made him the laughingstock of the demon world. Son of a bitch, Al_ knew_, and had jealously guarded his prize from all who would court her favor.

Ash could understand that...now he had a secret of his own. He regarded the witch...well, no, she wasn't really a witch any more than he was, but he still thought of her as such. It would be safer, as long as he didn't make such a terribly stupid and potentially lethal mistake again.

Evie interrupted his contemplation with a sullen, "Look, if you're going to punish me for that, just do it, would you? The suspense is killing me."

"Don't tempt me," he growled.

He watched her pull the blanket back over her shivering body with her unwounded hand.

"Do you even have _any idea _whatyou just did?" he asked finally.

"Not a fucking clue, Ash. Though I can safely say that having my soul sucked out is officially off of my bucket list."

He wanted to laugh at her bravado, but her words were too painful. She hadn't known what she'd been doing, and he really had no right to blame her for following vague instincts without knowing their full import. Or for having been raised to regard witches and humans as anything other than the fodder that they were, to be exploited and discarded as necessary. He hadn't forgiven her, yet, but his irrational, murderous fury had subsided into something more reasonable. He wouldn't make that mistake again, and for the time being he would keep her shackled and impotent as long as she was within his presence. And he would keep her nearby...but under what pretext?

That was easy enough. She knew of Al and Rachel's arrangement. He'd make her his student.

"Hmm." He rose to his feet, leaning on the broken cabinet and rubbing his chest. Though the outer wounds had healed, the spiritual damage was still bloody fucking painful. "Get off the floor, Evie, you look pathetic."

Unexpectedly, she chucked a china figurine at him and shouted, "I'll show you pathetic, you asshole!"

He was torn between exasperation and amusement...which was pretty much his default state around her. "Break any more of my things and I'll take it out of your hide," he warned. His eyes assessed the damage to her hand, and he frowned. "We really need to have a chat, Evie. Come. Sit. I won't touch you." She didn't move, so he said, "For the love of little burning bunnies, Evie, get your ass on this couch or I won't fix your hand."

She made a shaky move, then fell back, and he recalled that her soul must still be flailing wildly to reconnect. "I can't," she admitted.

He made another noise, and there was a more definite hint of amusement now. "Of course you can't," he said, and carried her there himself. She resisted when he tried to pry her blackened hand toward him, with the intent of determining how powerful a curse was necessary to patch her up. "Come, now, Evie, if I were still furious I'd just let you suffer. But I'll heal you right back up, if you answer me one question."

"Deal," she said quickly, and he heard the strain of pain in her voice. He healed her quickly and efficiently, and she regarded him suspiciously. "What gives, Ash? You're being way too nice all of a sudden. Not that I'm complaining, but..."

"I'm not being nice, I'm debating my next move. My question is this: how did you survive the Rosewood syndrome?"

She blinked at him, nonplussed. "I...didn't? I mean, I never had it."

"You did, the enzymes are in your blood, and yet you are perfectly healthy."

"I never had it, Ash, I don't know what the hell you're talking about."

Ash sat back and pondered this. "Your siblings?"

"Don't have any."

"Your parents?"

"Nope. I mean, Mom was real sick all her life, but it wasn't Rosewood, it was something wrong with her immune system. She died when I was born, of an infection she got in the hospital."

Ash's eyes widened. "You don't say. Extraordinary." Her mother's damaged immune system had not recognized the enzymes. Amazing. And having survived the curse, her daughter had been born free of it. Healthy and whole, with the potential to create more of their kind. Again, he understood why Al had so carefully guarded his secret, had given his wealth, lost his reputation, and clung to his standing through sheer grit and spit to keep his witch as a student, biding his time until he could trick or cajole her into putting herself completely in his power. To be the owner of the single most precious gift the demon world could possibly receive? Ash's toes tingled at the thought of it. He was already halfway there. He wondered if Al had seduced his witch yet. He wondered if Al could be a possible new ally in this game, or if they would remain rivals.

"Are you going to tell me why the poor dead mother I never knew was extraordinary?" she asked sourly, as if she already knew he wouldn't tell her.

Of course he wasn't going to tell her! She was the_ last _person who could be allowed to know her own importance! "No."

"Figures." She stopped questioning him, but her air as she slumped back was one of merely delay, not defeat. She glared at him. "Would you put some fucking clothes on, Ash?"

_Huh?_ He looked down. _ Oh, right. _ Mortals cared about such things, didn't they? There was little that was truly taboo in the Ever After, including nudity of any kind, and he no longer regarded clothing as anything other than the statement that it made. He found his lips twisting into a smirk. "I don't understand your request, Evie...these_ are_ my fucking clothes."

He ducked as she threw a pillow at him. "Evie, darling, we have a temporary truce here...you don't want to break it," he warned with a dangerous smile. "I have no wish to repeat that little exchange."

"Which one?" she asked tartly.

His eyes glittered with amusement. She was getting her spark back. "Dangerous waters, Evie. Quit while you're ahead."

She huffed and hiked the blanked a bit closer about her, as if still cold, though he'd always kept his rooms a nice balmy temperature for any spontaneous... activities... that might occur. And he was even more amused to see her eyes flicking furtively back to him, unable to resist temptation. "How long until sunrise?" she asked suddenly.

"So eager to leave, love? Twelve hours, give or take."

"And where exactly are you going to drop me off?"

"That depends on how the next twelve hours go," he said with amusement.

She blinked as a scenerio occurred to her. "God, Ash, you're not going to just dump me out in the middle of the Outback with nothing but a blanket, are you?"

Ash's eyes widened appreciatively. Now that _was_ an excellent idea, wasn't it? No, he hadn't given it much thought yet, but she didn't need to know that. "Who ever said you could keep my blanket?" he asked playfully, and she cursed and did a face-palm. Oh, she had so much to learn about bargaining with a demon. She was so much fun. "Up for a little more bargaining, love?"

"No," she growled.

He snickered. "I hope you brought your sunscreen, then."

He saw her weigh the seriousness of the threat, before his gullible witch sighed and said petulantly, "All right, Ash, what do you want in exchange for leaving me in an inhabited area with some appropriate clothing, since _someone _ripped mine all to shreds? And by inhabited I mean by actual _people,_ not animals or more demons," she added quickly.

"Better," he said, amused. "Since I effectively have you at my mercy, I would like to come to a...new arrangement. I want you to be my student."


	9. Chapter 9

**In Which Ash Acquires A New Toy At A Bargain Price**

The astonished look on her face was priceless. "Say what?"

"Algaliarept has a witch for a student, and I suddenly find myself craving a witch of my own to torment. I mean, to lovingly train like the child I never had. You'll do."

"You're joking."

"I'm not."

"You can't be my mentor, we've already...you know," she said, looking shocked.

"And what has _that _got to do with anything...?" he asked, truly puzzled. She really had some odd notions in her head, didn't she? Why wouldn't a master enjoy full use of his student?

"It's just not right," she stuttered, blushing.

Ash rolled his eyes. Her protest made no sense. He decided they must have odd rules about that sort of thing where she'd taught. "I am _trying _to be flattering, here. You have potential. I want to teach you."

"...and what do you get out of it?" she asked suspiciously.

_Wouldn't you like to know...? _he replied silently, with a dazzling smile. He saw her frown and his smile widened.

"Once a week, like Rachel's set it up with Al?" she asked skeptically.

He considered for a moment. "That will buy you...the inhabited area," he said. "And the blanket."

"How generous of you. Two days?"

He grinned. _ Just two days? Not likely. _ "Lingerie."

"Ash!"

How he loved it when she said his name in that helpless, exasperated tone. "Four days, and I will throw in your clothes as well as a permanent alteration of your appearance," he offered.

"What...exactly...does being your student entail?" she asked suspiciously. "What are you going to be teaching me?"

"How to twist curses. Our culture. Perhaps a bit of our history." _Nothing lethal,_ he added silently. Mostly, he simply would distract her with things that would keep her busy, have her stir more complex curses that Solange couldn't manage, and saturate her mind and body with himself until she yielded to him again. Her instincts would take care of the rest.

"So in other words," she said, thinking hard about it, "You train me like a familiar, show me off to your buddies, and brainwash me with demon propaganda?"

"Don't forget the parties," he said, grinning again, "They can be a real hoot. Four days with me, three in reality for your sun and exercise. And shopping runs, it's such a pain to get decent coffee and pastries this side of the lines."

"Ash, how the hell am I supposed to make a living on three days a week?"

:"You make a good point, Better make it five, and you can have weekends off."

"Two days here, five days off!" she countered. "I need a job! I can't just hang out in an alley somewhere every weekend!"

"Quite right. Perhaps you should simply stay here."

"I'm serious, Ash! I'll consider this student thing, but you have to be more straight with me."

Ash looked at her intently, suddenly very serious. "Then promise to stay here with me as my student indefinitely, and I will tell you anything you want to know." He would, too. If she would give herself to his possession completely, he would reward her. His first lesson would be to explain the significance of their actions, so she would understand his reaction. He was tempted to do that anyway, as she looked frightened as hell at the thought of being stuck here with him permanently.

"No. No, Ash, you just tried to suck out my fucking soul, and now you're asking me to move in with you? No!"

He'd really blown it, he thought. He wondered how long it would take him to reestablish her trust again, if it were even possible. "I would have given it back," he insisted. He reconsidered, admitting that he _had _been seriously pissed off at the time. "Maybe. After I calmed down. I swear, I have never met a witch who can infuriate me half as much as you can."

She regarded him skeptically, and he couldn't blame her. "You're not exactly helping your case, here, Ash...how do I know you won't end up doing all that shit you did to my friends to _me _if I piss you off again?"

_Hooooo, boy. _ How to reassure her that he would absolutely never, ever try that again because being burnt to a crisp by a pissed off demon woman wasn't his idea of fun...without letting her know that she was even a danger to him? "I won't," he assured her sincerely, then added, "I promise."

She didn't believe him, he could tell. "And that's another thing, Ash, I am not going to sit here and watch you catch and do all that shit to other kids. I get it, it's your job, but there's no fucking way I could just sit by and watch!"

He wanted to groan. Of course she would be distressed by the thought of her fellow witches being broken. "If it will help convince you, I will send you to reality whenever I-

"No, Ash! I'm back to thinking one day a week is plenty. I wouldn't want to have to cut into your busy schedule of soul-stealing and torturing teenagers, after all."

Shit. Hell and damnation. Suddenly Al's other odd behaviors over the last year or two was making quite a lot of sense. He'd semi-retired from catching familiars, even though he was so broke that he had to hit up Newt, of all people, for souls and spell components. Rachel must be giving him hell over his job. Well, Ash would be damned if he would change his lifestyle just to suit the high-minded ideals of his witch, damn it! He hit his head on the back of the couch, trying to see a way out of this. Evie was fucking stubborn enough that she might bail on him entirely if he didn't throw her a bone now.

Sooth her conscience, perhaps? It would be a little mortifying to admit that a lot of his threatening talk was exactly that: talk. "Evie, look. I didn't...I don't actually do all those things I told you I did."

She narrowed her eyes at him. No, she wasn't going to believe that for a second, was she? After all, she'd seen him torture her friend. He kicked himself _again_ over that mistake.

"I don't _usually_ need to," he added. "The shock of the initial betrayal is usually sufficient. A vicious response to any subsequent show of defiance is enough to convince them of the seriousness of their plight. Once they lose their soul, they lose their free will, and there's generally no need for further punishment. Young people are more malleable, more easily cowed by threats. And when you throw in more pleasant incentives for good behavior...?" he trailed off expectantly, waiting for her reaction.

He could see her working through that, still very suspicious. She finally shrugged, as if _how_ he broke his catches didn't matter at all. "It's still slavery, Ash."

"It is," he agreed seriously. "And some demons are much harsher on their familiars than others. And it is true that all familiars lose their usefulness over time. But it is not constant, eternal torment," he insisted as she looked even more furious at him. "Most of us have some fondness for our familiars. Even that bastard Algaliarept had an elf that he kept for over a thousand years before he tried to trade up with Rachel Mariana Morgan. That's an unprecedented lifespan for a familiar- _and _she's still alive, and she occasionally still stirs his curses for him even on the other side of the lines."

Her lips had tightened to a thin line, but his last few words had distracted her. "Who...who is your familiar, Ash?" she asked.

Ash contemplated for a moment telling her it was none of her fucking business, then decided perhaps it would be better for him to pretend to comply with her request to be more straight with her. Perhaps it would lead to fewer misunderstandings down the line. He issued a silent summons to Angel, and the girl appeared almost instantly, awaiting his instructions.

"Solange, this is Evie. My new student."

"Hey! I haven't agreed to anything!" Evie protested, ignored.

Solange's eyes widened, and he felt her sudden terror through their bond. There were no thoughts that she could keep from him, and he heard her wordless fear that she would be discarded. Killed. Sold to someone else, someone worse.

"Relax, Angel, I'm not replacing you yet," he said, and he felt her wild tension ease a little. "Evie simply wanted to meet you."

"Um. Nice to meet you," Evie said uncomfortably. Solange simply bobbed her head a little in acknowledgment, obedient as always to his instructions that she speak to no one without permission.

"Be a dear and mend her clothing. I'm afraid I was a bit hasty in my eagerness."

Solange picked up the ripped blouse and skirt and vanished with them. _Quickly? _She asked silently through their bond. Oh, yes, Angel knew him well, he thought appreciatively.

_Take your time,_ he replied, then realized he really needed to run some errands and she'd need some kind of attire, added, _Prepare suitable student robes for her as well._

_Are you pleased with her?_

_Yes._

_Purple, then_, Angel thought, and added, _Shall I bring refreshments?_

_No, Angel. We will be leaving shortly. Bring the robes as soon as they are ready._

_Your will, Kavi,_ she replied, and went about her business.

"She, um, doesn't talk much, does she?" Evie said lamely.

"No, she does not speak before strangers, not without permission."

Evie looked like she wanted to throw up. "Why the hell did you...Jesus, Ash, this is seriously fucked up!"

"Did she look abused, tormented, tortured?" he asked, wondering if perhaps he should have released Angel from her silence to reassure Evie herself that she wasn't suffering unduly.

"No, Ash, she looked fucking _dead! _How long have you been keeping that poor girl here?"

_Dead? Ha! _Angel was far from the cringing, emotionless shells that other demons kept. Evie would find out soon enough how willful the girl could be, and how much of her personality she'd kept despite having lost her soul to him. But that could wait. Ash did a mental calculation. "A hundred and eighty years, give or take," he replied.

"Take me home, Ash!" Evie shouted suddenly, absolutely furious. "I don't want to hear another word out of your mouth! God, how you can just sit there and pretend this isn't the vilest, cruelest thing you could do to somebody is just..."

"I'm not pretending it isn't," he said quietly. "I simply refuse to allow you any more illusions about who and what I am. And I will not let you leave before the appointed time, so please sit and stop shouting at me."

He was rather proud of keeping his cool. One of them had to, and Evie was getting overwrought again.

"Poor Evie," he said mockingly. "So confused, so conflicted."

"So homicidal."

He laughed. "That's my girl. Do we have a deal?"

"One day a week?" she muttered, surrendering to the inevitable. She had to bargain, and he would win, and she'd end up in deeper shit than before, and she totally knew it. How delightful!

"Five."

"_One,_ Ash," she insisted, and he wondered if perhaps he'd been hasty. She knew something was up. "Two if you do the appearance alteration thingie you mentioned."

"Three," he countered.

"Two. And you tell me why you want a student."

"You'll find out soon enough part of the reason, but the rest...? Not a chance in hell." he said with a wicked grin.

"Shit. OK, then...tell me what you did to my friends, for_ real _this time."

Ash's eyes blazed in triumph. _Evie, Evie, Evie, I have got to teach you how to bargain properly..._ "Three days a week, and I will let you speak to them."

He saw her eyes widen in shock and knew she was his. "For how long?"

"As long as you wish, provided they don't have other duties."

"_Damn it!_" She took out her ire on a convenient pillow, punching it hard. "All right. Three days. I really can't bargain for shit, can I?"

"No," he agreed. "You were doing well until you told me what you really wanted. But there will be no wheeling and dealing with others until I teach you to do it properly." He clapped his hands and then rubbed them gleefully. Well, now, if he were going to act the role of the master for his new student, he might as well do it properly!


	10. Chapter 10

**In Which Ash Demonstrates That The Ever After Is Not Your Typical University When It Comes To Master-Student Relations, and Evie Does Something Really Disgustingly Cute That Makes Ash Want To Vomit. UGH.**

The next few hours passed in a flash, as he quickly established his claim on Evie through all the appropriate channels, wandered around being conspicuous at the mall so that the rumors would begin to fly quickly, haggled for a classroom (no way he'd let her into his private sanctuaries just yet), and had a delightful encounter with Al. Al wasn't all that thrilled to find that Ash had figured out what he was up to, but Ash decided he'd meet with his rival later and perhaps establish a basis for an alliance. Two of them would stand more of a chance against Newt's machinations than one.

Evie was exhausted by the time they'd finished, having been awake for well over twenty four hours by then. She had no way of gauging time here, would have no idea that it was well past sunset Down Under. Still, he could always claim that they were starting her three days ahead of schedule if she started bitching. It wasn't like she had much choice in the matter, not knowing how to jump the lines herself.

After Al went slinking back to his lair, he turned to see Evie tapping her foot impatiently. "All right, out with it, Ash. What is it about Rachel and I that is so fucking peculiar that we qualify as students?"

Ash was positively giddy with his own cleverness in snaring her, at figuring out her secret and Al's, at how smoothly everything had gone today. He was especially pleased at how well Evie had behaved herself, though she owed him for her cheekiness in Dali's office. He smiled, having planned his revenge for hours.

He sauntered over with a finger to his lips playfully, then looked around theatrically as if making sure nobody could overhear them. Then he leaned forward and whispered in her ear. "Because like Rachel Mariana Morgan, you, my new student, can invoke demon magic."

As she stared at him in bewildered astonishment, he decided he'd waited long enough. He kissed her as she stood frozen with surprise, then sent a powerful wave of magic to activate his mark. She gasped and went limp in his arms as he caught her, eyes closed with bliss.

"You want this," he murmured in her ear, as she shook and panted with pleasure. "Despite everything, you still want this, and you hate it. You hate me, but you crave my touch. It infuriates you."

She couldn't speak against the waves of sensation coursing through her, but she made a small sound of surrender. She responded passionately when he kissed her again, locking her arm around his neck tightly and pressing herself against him. A little surprised, he kept up the magic, even amplifying the intensity. She shuddered deeply against him. Ash jerked when her hand slipped down to caress his erection through his robes, surprised beyond belief at her willingness to forgive...or at least, put temporarily on hold...his earlier transgression. He groaned his approval, this time letting her hand slip and twine about him, exploring through the soft fabric.

She continued to kiss him hungrily even as he eased up on the the magic activating the mark, for he was finding himself too distracted to do it properly. The last thing he wanted was to accidentally zap her and have her interpret it as another attack. Instead he walked them backwards, until he had her against the rough stone wall, trapped. She barely seemed to notice, her face flushed and eyes closed, head tossed back as his lips burned trails of fire down her neck, her hand never ceasing in its deliberate strokes. The feeling was delicious, and was driving him absolutely wild with lust.

At last he ripped open her robes, once again tearing the expensive fabric in his haste. Once she was bared to him, he dropped to his knees and sent his tongue exploring her inner thighs, her labia, her clitoris. He gripped her hips as she cried out with surprise and pleasure, her legs trembling and threatening to buckle as he increased the pace of his ministrations.

She smelled incredible, wild, sweet, with the scent of his essence still marking her as his from deep within. She tasted all the more sweet to him for her willingness, for her desire and passion. He grunted with pleasure as she moaned and gasped, her fingers once again in his hair, holding him, encouraging him. He sensed her climax coming and added just a bare hint of leyline power to his movements, and she screamed wildly in response. Her knees gave way as she came, hard, and he held her in place until her shudders ceased.

Before she could recover he was inside her, having lifted her enough to impale her. She was tense and tight now, and she screamed again as he plunged himself ever deeper into her willing warmth. He pressed her hard against the cold stones, ravaging her body as she clung to his shoulders with tense fingers and cried out his name, again and again. He knew it would take him no time at all to finish, and at the moment of his orgasm he activated her mark again so she could join him in ecstasy.

Locked within her again, he slid smoothly to his knees, bringing her with him. Sitting, he kept her straddling him, kissing her again as she tried to catch her breath and her bearings. It had been quite an effective trick to play, Ash considered, as his witch trembled on his lap. He drew his nails down her back, but with light pressure, not scratching, and she arched against him again involuntarily. Oh, yes, she'd be quite pissed at him for that. He could hardly wait.

She caught her breath and moaned softly as he nibbled on her neck again, still lost in her sensory overload. Ash watched her face with amused wonder. His witch. He would find a way to keep her all to himself, and if he were very, very clever, she would think it was her own idea.

Evie hid her face in his neck, and he could tell that she was exhausted, on the verge of collapsing. She'd had a fairly surreal day, all things considered, and he was pleased at how well she'd held up. "Ash," she murmured. "I need to sleep. I can't face reality just yet. Can I sleep on your couch?"

Ash smiled and stroked her hair. "I think we can do better than that, student," he replied quietly. He was inclined to be generous, especially if she were actually _asking_ to stay _longer_.

He felt her relaxing further, and realized she really was nearly asleep. "Don't...don't call me that," she complained.

"You may hate me, but you _are _my student now," he replied. She needed to get used to the idea.

"I'm not calling you 'master,'" she insisted sleepily, and he snorted. He didn't give a damn what she called him, but insisting on proper protocol for the purpose of legitimizing this whole charade might be fun.

"Perhaps, 'professor?'" he suggested with a grin, knowing that calling him Professor Ash would chafe her hide even worse than the traditional honorific. He resolved that he'd make her do it, just to annoy her.

She groaned and didn't reply. She moved as if to try to un-impale herself, but he held her fast. He felt her yawn hugely.

"Ash?" she said faintly. "I don't hate you. I should," and she yawned again, "but..." And she was out, fast asleep with him still stuck fast.

Aw. How disgustingly sweet. He couldn't help laughing a little at the ridiculous situation, wishing he had a way to take a snapshot of it to taunt her with later. He nearly called Angel back in to do so, then realized that such a photo would be even worse blackmail material on _him_. He snickered again. Instead he simply jumped them both to his bed, forgetting for the moment that he'd resolved to keep her out of his private rooms.


End file.
